Exploria Stadium | Orlando, Florida – Saturday, May 6 at 7:00 PM ET
Players to watch:
Orlando attacker Adriana notched a goal and assist in Saturday’s massive 3-1 win over San Diego, while four other Pride players had either a goal or an assist. The occasion marked the first time Orlando had five or more players with a goal contribution in a single league match since five players did so against the Washington Spirit on July 6, 2019. Prior to the win, only forward Messiah Bright had scored a goal, with teammates Mikayla Cluff and Haley McCutcheon also adding their names to the season’s scoresheet alongside Adriana.
Racing Louisville midfielder Savannah DeMelo, who has a penchant for shots from distance, scored from 27 yards away in the club’s 2-2 draw with OL Reign last Saturday. That goal means that all five of DeMelo’s career non-penalty goals have come from at least 19 yards away from goal, while four have come from outside the box, the most of any NWSL player since DeMelo’s debut last season. In that same game, midfielder Paige Monaghan was able to add her name to the list of season scorers with her first goal in Racing colors which came after just seven minutes.
Match facts: Two sides who have not yet gelled into the teams they want to be, the Orlando Pride and Racing Louisville FC square off at Exploria Stadium in the first of a three-game Saturday evening. Orlando, who is coming in fresh off its first win of the year, welcomes a Racing team that has yet to win its first game of its season having amassed five points off four draws and a loss.
Orlando’s 3-1 win over San Diego last Saturday was the Pride’s first win by a multi-goal margin in NWSL play since a 3-1 win over this Saturday’s opponents—Racing Louisville—on September 11, 2021. Orlando’s streak of 38 consecutive matches without a multi-goal win was the third-longest such streak in NWSL history (all competitions). The result snapped a four game skid that brought losses against all of Portland, Angel City, Gotham, and Kansas City, a stretch in which the Pride conceded 10 and scored just one.
Meanwhile, Racing Louisville played to a 2-2 draw with OL Reign last Saturday, the team’s fourth draw in five NWSL matches (L1) this season and their third draw by an exact score of 2-2. Of note, Louisville had three draws with multiple goals scored for them in regular season play in its first two seasons combined. Louisville had come from behind against Washington in its 2-2 draw, while 2-2 draws against Angel City and the Reign both resulted in Louisville establishing a lead and their respective opponents coming back to claim a point.
Louisville has scored in all five of its regular season matches against Orlando, having notched multiple goals in each of the last three meetings. Racing’s goals per game average of 1.8 against the Pride is their best against an opponent they hae played four or more times in league play.
